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At the turn of the ninetieth century in North America, a lot of important buildings were built in the classical style. They were mostly designed for government, education and financial institutions. These included banks, post offices and libraries. After more than a hundred years, a lot of them failed to survive. Some of them are targets for redevelopment in the city because they occupy a prime location in the downtown. To me, every one of them has a story to tell. To live a hundred years, there is a lot of histories of the city related to or happened in them. Also they are work of art. You can’t find that kind of craftsmanship anymore. The fact that no one can really replicate or build them at the same fine level of details means that when we destroy one there is going to be one less of them in the world.

I am especially attached to them because of their beauty in design. Unlike some new buildings, you can always find the front entrance usually of grand scale easily. Also it is comfortable being inside them. They have high ceiling height, lots of windows and natural light. Sometimes they even with marble floors and wood panels on the wall. In new buildings, you only see painted dry wall, carpet and suspended ceiling tiles. What’s more, these old buildings are easy on the eyes. Unlike some “faceless” new buildings that need to be decorated with giant commercial posters, these old buildings have a nice-looking facade with the right proportion, a good human scale and enough ornaments. Sadly not everyone is able to see the values in these endangered building types.